CPI Card Group Inc. (NASDAQ:PMTS) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

CPI Card Group Inc. (NASDAQ:PMTS) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 102,300 shares, an increase of 47.2% from the November 15th total of 69,500 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 36,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Equity Ulc Parallel49 sold 1,380,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $28,980,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,813,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,093,517. This trade represents a 22.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director H Sanford Riley purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $32.51 per share, for a total transaction of $65,020.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $308,845. This represents a 26.67 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CPI Card Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PMTS. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of CPI Card Group by 129.1% in the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,656 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of CPI Card Group by 182.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 3,414 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of CPI Card Group by 32.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 6,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 1,555 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in CPI Card Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $205,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in CPI Card Group by 251.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $205,000 after acquiring an additional 5,243 shares during the period. 22.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PMTS has been the subject of several research reports. DA Davidson began coverage on CPI Card Group in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on CPI Card Group from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $37.67.

CPI Card Group Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of PMTS traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $34.29. 31,502 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 29,891. CPI Card Group has a 52 week low of $15.00 and a 52 week high of $34.50. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.14. The company has a market cap of $382.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73 and a beta of 1.39.

CPI Card Group Company Profile

CPI Card Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, production, data personalization, packaging, and fulfillment of financial payment cards. It operates through Debit and Credit, and Prepaid Debit segments. The Debit and Credit segment produces financial payment cards and provides integrated card services to card-issuing financial institutions.